Exploreseville.com

More Than Travel Books

If you're traveling to Sevilla or Spain your first thought may be a guide book. Those are very useful and I think it's a very wise investment. However I've always enjoyed reading a little more about history, culture, art or whatever I can to better understand my destination. I recommend doing the same, especially if you plan to be in Spain for a longer than average stay. Below are the the "bookshelves" of the Explore Seville store. Each one opens a new page where you can browse the sections. I have also listed some of my favorites from each section, but by all means browse the section to see if a particular book fits your needs.

I sell all books through Amazon, and I do earn a very small (and I mean very small) percentage from each sale which goes back into this site. This helps me continue to work on what I love and expand the information offered on these pages.

Topics in this section

My Recommendations

A few recommendations for each category on the bookshelves in the store, but don't take my word for that they are the best books for you. There is plenty to choose from in each section so take a look at the full selection before you decide on anything.

Travel Guides

cover Seville & Andalusia (Eyewitness Travel Guides)
The best part of these books are the illustrations, photos and 3-D views which help you easily learn about the specifics of the places you visit. For the main tourist attractions this book is very helpful, and has received praise for the quality of it's city maps. It covers Sevilla better than the other cities of Andalucia, and some consider it the best guide around for Sevilla. For the "off the beaten path" attractions many have recommended using Lonely Planet or Let's Go in conjunction with this book.

> SEE MORE SEVILLA & ANDALUCIA GUIDE BOOKS

cover Lonely Planet Spain (Travel Guides)
If you've seen the television series you have a good idea of what Lonely Planet is all about. They do a good job of covering the out of the way places and the budget hotels and hostals. Also included are some helpful phrases in Catalan, Basque and Galician (yes, they do speak languages other than Spanish in Spain!). Some readers have complained about a lack of detail for the accommodations, and the more luxury minded have found it less useful. Others have complained about errors in prices listed here for museums and other sites. Of course carrying more money than the just the entry fee for the attractions listed in the books not only helps, it is just plain common sense. While lacking some detail on transportation and hotels it often gets higher marks than Let's Go for the maps and insider info from people who live in Spain. A Spanish phrase book is also available from Lonely Planet.

> SEE MORE SPAIN GUIDE BOOKS

 

cover The Companion Guide to the South of Spain (Companion Guides)
Unique in that it's written by one person, Alfonso Lowe, who proves to be extremely knowledgeable as well as entertaining in his writings. It also gives the book an even flow which that have been pieced together may lack. Lowe knows his stuff - from history to architecture and culture the topics are detailed, factual and interesting. Some great recommendations on restaurants and local cuisine.

> SEE MORE UNIQUE & ALTERNATIVE GUIDE BOOKS

 

cover Lonely Planet Spanish: Phrasebook (Lonely Planet Language Survival Kit)
Make your way around Spain with a little language help. Phrase books are often a good companion to a dictionary. Nonetheless this one includes a basic two-way dictionary and sentence builder plus pronunciation for every word. Fiestas, flamenco and fútbol vocabulary. Basque, Catalan & Galician sections plus local slang and a culinary dictionary for dining out.

> SEE MORE LANGUAGE & PHRASE BOOKS

History & Art

cover
Spain: A History

Nobody puts together the history of Spain like Raymond Carr, one of the most respected authors of Spanish History in English. Carr did a remarkable job unifying the work of several different authors into one cohesive piece. Starting with prehistoric Spain and moving through periods of Roman rule, the Visigoths, Moors and the Enlightenment. Along the way learn of the impressive literary and artistic history of the country.

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT HISTORY


cover Velazquez in Seville
If you really love Velazquez and Sevilla then this book is worth the $70 you'll pay. Full of color illustrations it focuses on Velazquez's years in Sevilla and the influences the culture, religion and city had on his work in his formative years. It's one of those coffee table books, but it doesn't convert to a coffee table if you don't have one like Kramer's book in Seinfeld.

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT ART & ARCHITECTURE


cover Moorish Spain -
A great book for travelers of Andalucia who want to know more detail about the 700 years of Islamic Spain. Covering everything from art, architecture, poetry and history the book is also extremely readable for a "history" text. The author, Richard Fletcher, also offers specific examples and theories on how Spain acted as the most important Islamic influence on modern European culture and thought. I've only read half the book at this point, but will be finished within the next few days!

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT ISLAMIC SPAIN

 

Culture & More

coverThe New Spaniards -
Probably the best book you can read to understand where the Spanish as a people have been and are going in the future. Topics such as women in spain, ETA, regionalism, work, real estate and social and economic policy are well written and without the dry commentary you'd expect on such subjects. Television, radio, eating, drinking and other topics show give you insight into daily, individual life in Spain. I would recommend this as the first book you should read before studying or living here.

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT CULTURE

 

cover Duende: A Journey Into the Heart of Flamenco
A travel memoir following several years of the life of Jason Webster, an Englishman with plenty of travel experience, who sets out to learn the passion of flamenco in Spain. Starting in Alicante and following to Madrid, Webster gives an account of his search for the meaning of duende, "an untranslatable term referring to the feeling that is the essence of flamenco" (Publsihers Weekly). A foreigner's perspective on a distinctly Spanish tradition.

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT FLAMENCO

 

cover The Dangerous Summer
Hemingway covered the 1959 bullfighting season as a piece for Life magazine which ended up being his last work before his death at the age of 60. His goal was to cover the places and events which inspired his novel Death in the Afternoon. The work concentrates on two rival matadors during the season while Hemingway's friendship one of them provides an interesting perspective. Aside from it being Hemingway and Spain, the book offers a wonderful portrait of bullfighting and Spain in the Franco era.

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT TOROS

 

Experience & Living

cover Driving over Lemons: An Optimist in Spain
One of the first books I read once I decided I was heading back to Spain. While certainly a different life than what I planned to lead it was thoroughly entertaining. The author decides to move himself and his wife to a small farm cut-off from much of civilization in the Alpujarras. His adjustment to life, from making friends to learning basic customs of a rural people, show it's not an easy transition. Having hiked through the same mountains it was interesting to read more about the places and people I saw along the way.

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT TRAVEL EXPERIENCE

 

cover Living and Working in Spain: Survival Handbook (AVAILABLE USED - hard to find)
A more thorough and up to date handbook by David Hampshire for the move to Spain than the book above. Unfortunately it's only available used at this time. While it is more up to date reader complaints suggest that the section on immigration laws and work permits perhaps need to be updated, as well as some of the observations on Spanish bureaucracy, which is becoming easier to get through now. Notice I say "easier" and not "easy"...

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT LIVING & WORKING IN SPAIN

Food & Drink

cover Lonely Planet World Food Spain (Lonely Planet World Food Guides)
A guide to Spanish food including history and background of regional specialties. Wines and drink included as well. Definitions, great pictures and wonderful descriptions of dishes. There are no recommendations for restaurants, so think of this book as a way to understand Spanish food in general.

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT FOOD & DRINK

 

 

cover Tapas: The Little Dishes of Spain
You think of Spain and eating and the first thing that comes to mind are tapas! Before her book on paella there was this one, a favorite of many trying something new or relive there days ordering up a tapa or two. Over 300 recipes are included from all over Spain, but there's a few missing from Sevilla and Andalucia I wish were there. Although with so many recipes and regional specialties we can forgive Casas.

> SEE MORE BOOKS ABOUT COOKING

 

 

Fiction & More

cover The Seville Communion
Pérez-Reverte has become well know outside of Spain, this being his first best-seller in the US. The story of a priest from the Vatican investigating some strange deaths centering around a local church slated to be closed. A hacker has entered the Vatican computer system to alert the priest and I doubt you'll ever guess who it is until the end. Aside from a good mystery it's full of details and observation on Sevilla that only a Spaniard could give. A great read - highly recommended even if mystery is not your thing.

> SEE MORE POPULAR FICTION

 


 

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Editor: Jeff Spielvogel
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